It’s a week after the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon debuted, and it is still blowing up the internet. Its specs have already been tattooed on the faces of more than a few of Mopar’s faithful. But Dirk Häcker, vice president of engineering at BMW’s M division, hasn’t heard word one about America’s newest and most powerful muscle car.

“How much power?” he asks.

“840 horsepower.”

He nods. “Does it have a manual transmission?”

“Automatic only,” we say.

“All-wheel drive?”

“Nope, rear-wheel drive.”

He takes another sip from his drink. “Maybe my son has heard of it,” he says with more than a hint of derision. “He likes American performance cars.”

Häcker’s questions aren’t surprising considering the drivetrain in his team’s latest creation, the 2018 BMW M5, known internally as the F90. It will be the first M5 generation with all-wheel drive, electrically assisted power steering, and—hold on to your “Save the Manuals!” T-shirt—without an available manual transmission. (For the record, the E60 M5 launched for the 2006 model year exclusively with an automated manual, but a row-your-own gearbox was made available the next year.)

And if that’s not enough to send the M faithful into a panic, the sixth generation of BMW’s supersedan is the first to have a traditional automatic transmission. Yes, it has a torque converter.

Blaspheming Motoren Werke

Relax. The following day, a dozen laps in camouflaged M5 prototypes around the road courses at BMW’s Miramas test facility in southern France show that this car has the potential to be the best M5 since the E39 gave way to the Bangle-tastic E60. The M5’s new hardware may be blasphemous, but it’s good. Very good.

Even the mighty M division can no longer ignore the popularity that all-wheel-drive sedans enjoy in the United States. Not when the M5’s German rivals, the Mercedes-AMG E63 and the Audi RS7, send their power to all four wheels.

“Development of this M5 started with all-wheel drive in mind,” Häcker tells us.

Still, the engineers recognize that every M must be a driver’s car. So they designed an all-wheel-drive system with a true rear-wheel-drive mode. In this mode, torque completely bypasses the front axle regardless of the car’s slip angle. It’s unique among BMW xDrive models. With the push of a button, the full brunt of the engine’s torque output is sent to the electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential, which has been retooled with new carbon clutch plates that can vary the differential action from wide open to completely locked.

The all-wheel-drive system employs the same Magna-supplied transfer case as the 7-series xDrive range, although its clutch plates are now formed from carbon fiber instead of molybdenum for more consistent temperature control and longevity. BMW’s M division has more engineers working on software than ever before, and that’s where the real magic lies in this all-wheel-drive system. The control unit, tucked away in the area behind the left-front tire, analyzes steering angle, throttle position, wheelslip, each wheel’s drive torque, lateral load, and acceleration. It then determines how much locking force to apply to the center coupler and the rear differential. Three settings progressively increase the M5’s liveliness: a standard all-wheel-drive mode, a sport all-wheel-drive mode, and a rear-drive mode.

The system adds about 140 pounds, but BMW says the car still ended up roughly 90 pounds lighter than the portly previous model that weighed nearly 4400 pounds. Weight-saving measures include more extensive use of aluminum in the chassis, the new electrically assisted steering, and a standard carbon-fiber roof (although it’ll be steel if the optional sunroof is ordered). There’s also a lithium-ion battery. The diet, combined with all-wheel-drive grip, will make this the quickest M5 ever. Use launch control and BMW says the M5 will storm to 60 mph in less than 3.5 seconds. That’s more than half a second quicker than BMW quoted for its predecessor, which we tested at 3.7 seconds with the optional seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Driftable, Balanced, and Quick

Although total weight is down, balance has shifted slightly forward. There’s also a less aggressive tire stagger than before, but don’t let any of that concern you. Front-end grip is impressive. At Miramas, the big sedan feels light on its feet and shows a very friendly nature at the limit of its Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires, which are sized 275/35ZR-20 in front and 285/35ZR-20 at the rear (19-inch wheels will be standard).

This is an easy car to drive quickly. There’s just enough body roll to feel the chassis take a set in curves, and the car rotates nicely on the brakes. Yet, unlike the outgoing F10 M5, which could be a handful, it never feels as if it’s going to snap around and spit you off the road. Response from the all-wheel-drive system is consistent, linear, and predictable. This M5 is actually tossable, and it will drift when configured with the all-wheel drive in its Sport setting and the DSC system in M Dynamic mode, which allows for more tire slip. In RWD mode with DSC turned off you can powerslide it like an E90 M3.

The steering requires less effort than before, and it’s 25 percent quicker, which helps the car feel smaller and lighter than it is. It’s a huge improvement over the steering in the fifth-generation car. There’s also more feel—but not as much as you get from Porsche in the Panamera. The iron-rotor brakes are easy to modulate and showed no fade even after seven hard laps. Carbon-ceramic rotors will be optional.

Chassis modifications from the pedestrian 5-series include a slight increase in track, new aluminum-bodied dampers, and—unlike the F10 M5—a rubber-isolated rear subframe with revised bushings for improved ride comfort. This will be the fastest M5 ever around the Nürburgring, where testing is ongoing.

“About” 600 HP

The engine is strong but a bit anticlimactic only because it’s so familiar. Known as S63, it’s the same twin-turbo 4.4-liter V-8 with direct injection and variable valve timing that powered its predecessor, but here it’s modified to increase power and durability. The hot-vee-mounted turbochargers are larger and produce more boost, and the fuel-injection pressure is dialed up for more precise delivery and increased volume.

There’s a new higher-capacity oil pump, and a new oil pan is required to package the all-wheel-drive system. The direction of the oil flow has also been modified slightly, but Häcker wouldn’t get more specific. He also wouldn’t tell us much about the changes to the cooling system, although he admits the water pump has a higher capacity.

The results also are familiar, as they build upon the upgrades of the 575-hp 2016 M5 with the Competition package. Power jumps from 560 horsepower in the old base M5 to “about” 600 horsepower, and torque increases from 500 lb-ft to roughly 515 lb-ft. The redline remains at 7250 rpm.

The redesigned and lighter exhaust system is a bit louder than before, and there’s a new button on the console to make it louder still. It sounds good, with a deep growl, but it’s not obnoxious. Unfortunately, BMW continues to synthesize the engine’s roar through the audio system.

Switching from BMW’s seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission to the ZF eight-speed isn’t something to be concerned with, either. It’s the same gearbox used in the 7-series and the X5, but it’s tuned by M for this application, and it’s no slushbox. According to Häcker, the torque converter locks up by the time the car has traveled just over three feet and it achieves “very close” to zero torque loss on gearchanges.

There’s a Sport mode, one of three levels of shift intensity, which can be manipulated with a button on the shifter. In Sport+ mode the eight-speed is telepathic, always downshifting when you want it to and upshifting at the engine’s redline with a satisfying punch. Use the paddles and it responds quickly enough, plus it will hold gears at redline. You won’t miss the dual-clutch.

Distinguishing the M5 from the M550i xDrive are a straked hood, flared front fenders with vents, a small lip on the rear wheel arches, sculpted rocker panels, M-specific mirrors, and aggressive front and rear fascias. Inside, the M steering wheel retains its two configurable M Drive buttons (M1 and M2) to shortcut to your favorite setups among the zillion combinations of tune for the steering, suspension, stability control, and drivetrain.

Production will begin soon after the car is officially unveiled at the Frankfurt auto show in September. In the meantime, we were told that 100 M5 mules are being tested all over the world as Häcker’s team finalizes the last 5 percent of development. When complete, all the hardware and software likely will migrate quickly to the next-generation M6 and M6 Gran Coupe. Expect production M5 sedans in dealerships early next year.

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